Samples from the publication:

2022 Public Perception Survey: Plastic Pollution. Virginia's Voters Support Action

September 2022. 8 pages. Free download.
May 2023. 285 pages! Free Download.

Virginia voters are concerned about plastic getting into our rivers, bays and ocean, and they support action to decrease littered plastic bags, bottles, cups, food containers and other plastic items according to a new statewide survey by the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program (CZM), Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood University (CVW), and OpinionWorks.

The survey explored the perceptions and attitudes of Virginia’s voters about several problems, and measured voters’ support for policies that have been adopted in other states:
• Deposits on beverage bottles and cans
• Requirements to decrease plastic packaging
• Shifting the costs of recycling from taxpayers to the producers of the plastic waste
• Laws to reduce the use of polystyrene, plastic bags, and other commonly littered items.

This survey reveals that Virginia voters are deeply concerned about plastic pollution, and are ready to support policies to decrease plastic pollution, especially the plastic that ends up in the ocean. Data from this survey will assist in crafting successful behavior change campaigns as well as public policies.

OpinionWorks, in partnership with CZM and CVW, conducted a representative statewide sampling of 901 Virginia registered voters March 8-13, 2022. This survey sample has a potential error margin of ±3.3 at the 95% confidence level. Voters were interviewed online and on wireless and landline telephones. This survey represented all areas of the Commonwealth and matched the profile of the registered voter population including gender, race and ethnicity, and age. The survey respondents were equally represented by political affiliation-- Republican, Democrat and independent. As a follow-up, the researchers invited a cross-section of voters into deeper, one-on-one interviews to better understand their attitudes and reasoning around these issues.

Data from Litter Cleanups: Leading to Solutions. A CVW Marine Litter Report.

Sept 2022. 4 pages. Free download.

There are many questions about where litter
comes from, how it travels through watersheds,
and where it ends up. Data can help
us understand what the most abundant sources
of litter are in your local community, in Virginia,
in the United States, and in the entire world. With data, we can prioritize prevention strategies and shape future actions.

Read about WHY and HOW we collect data during our statewide cleanup events, and how you can contribute!

2021-2025 Virginia Marine Debris Reduction Plan

November 2021. 37 pages. Free download.

This updated Virginia Marine Debris Reduction Plan (VMDRP) for 2021-2025 is a roadmap, planning and monitoring tool, and a common framework for collaboration that will lead us to cleaner and healthier coastal waters and oceans.

Plastic pollution and marine debris are of local, regional, national, and global concern, so the Virginia Coastal Zone Management (CZM) Program took a leadership role in creating the first VMDRP in 2014–making Virginia the first state on the east coast to have a Plan in place to reduce marine debris and only the second in the US. Now, this updated Plan further strategically addresses this problem through policies, laws, research, behavior-change, and action on all levels. It establishes a comprehensive framework for strategic action and identifies priorities to reduce the impacts of marine debris on Virginia’s coasts, people, and wildlife.

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Balloons and Plastic Ribbons: Deadly Litter on Virginia's Remote Beaches

January 2021. 4 pages. Free download

Latex balloons, foil balloons and plastic ribbons are deadly forms of litter, and they are a top source of debris found on Virginia’s remote beaches according to this new report by Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood University. Litter was surveyed on Virginia’s barrier islands, Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge, Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge, and other beaches between 2013 and 2020 revealing that balloon-related litter items are often the #1 most frequently found type of debris.

Research cited in the report was done in conjunction with behavior research and a social marketing campaign in Virginia to understand and reduce the intentional releases of balloons during memorial and celebratory events. The campaign was created by the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, Clean Virginia Waterways, NOAA Coastal Management, and NOAA Marine Debris Program. This campaign has inspired an expanded campaign effort in the Mid-Atlantic also referenced in the report.

REPORT: Littered Bottles & Cans: Higher in Virginia Than in States with Bottle Bills.

November 2020. Free download

Plastic bottles, glass bottles, and aluminum cans are approximately two and half times more frequently littered in Virginia (a state without a bottle bill) than in states with bottle bills according to this new report by Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood University. We compared litter data from states with bottle bills to states without bottle bills. In Virginia, bottles and cans accounted for nearly 22 percent of all litter recorded by volunteers in 2019. But in states with container deposit bills, bottles and cans accounted for less than 9 percent, on average, of the total debris recorded during the 2019 International Coastal Cleanup.

Monitoring Marine Debris in Virginia's Coastal Zone.
Project Report: April 2014 through June 2018

April 2019. Free Download.

Researchers from the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center teamed up with Clean Virginia Waterways to conduct monthly monitoring of marine debris on four coastal beaches in Virginia in 2014-2018. This report documents the 15,276 pieces of debris that were found--the vast majority of which (83.0%) were made of plastic.

This project was funded by the VA Coastal Zone Management Program at the VA Department of Environmental Quality through two grants which were funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A report from the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center to the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program by Katie Register, Christina Trapani and Mark Swingle.